Steam iron water gauge



Jan. 29, 1963 A. w. SEYFRIED ET AL 3,075,309

STEAM IRON WATER GAUGE Filed Nov; 9, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS.

ARTHUR H! SEYFR/ED ELIZABETH BAXTER MUDGE A X-QTZW 1963 A. w. SEYFRIED ET AL 3,075,309

STEAM mou WATER GAUGE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 9. 1959 INVENTORS. ART HUI? W. SE YFR/ED ELIZABETH BAXTER MUDGE A TTORNE'Y United te, P t flm 3,075,309 STEAli i IRON WATER GAUGE Arthur W. Seyfried and Elizabeth Baxter Madge, Racine, Wis, assignors to Scot iii Manufacturing Company, Waterbury, (loan, a corporation of Connecticut Filed Nov. 9, 1%9, Ser. No. 851,668 2 (Iiaims. (CI. 38-47) This invention relates to steam irons and more particularly to a steam iron provided with a water gauge which indicates the amount of water in the reservoir;

The object of the invention is to provide means whereby the operator can determine the quantity of water in the reservoir at all times. Thus the reservoir may be filled directly from a water faucet, without requiring the use of a measuring cup: The quantity of water in the reservoir may be determined at any time by placing the iron on end.

The advantages of the invention are obvious. The reservoir can be filled direct-1y froma water faucet without overflowing and withoutusing a measuring cup. Operation of the iron without an adequate supply of water is avoided.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1. is a. side elevational. View, partly in. section, of a steam iron embodying our invention.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the iron standing on end, showing the top of the iron with the handle partially broken away. I

FIG. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view in the plane of the line 3--3- of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4' is a transverse vertical sectional view of a modified form of Water gauge in a steam iron.

FIG. 5 is a plan view, partly in section, of a part of the iron of FIG. 4.

The invention may be embodied in various kinds of conventional steam irons. The iron shown herein oomprises a body It), sole I1 and handle 12. Means for heating the iron and means for controlling the heating means need not be described since they do not relate to the subject matter of this application.

Handles of conventional steam irons are made of plastic material which resists heat generated in the sole 11. Usually they are hollow in the forward enlarged portion 13 to provide space for mounting therein the steam valve control means and water reservoir filling tubes. In the embodiment shown herein, a water reservoir is indicated at 14 in the open top body It The upper surface of the reservoir is spaced from the inward- 1y directed curved portions 15 of the body Itl as shown in FIG. 3. The handle 12 includes a generally horizontal shield portion 16 which bears on and extends across the body between the upright members 17 of the handle. The shield 16 protects the hand of the operator from the heated metal portions of the iron.

Referring now more particularly to the preferred embodiment of our invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, inclusive, the top of the reservoir 14 is cut away or otherwise provided with a window opening 20 which is elongated in the direction of the length of the iron, relatively narrow and parallel sided, extending longitudinally between the upright members 17 of the handle 12 midway between the sides of the reservoir. The shield 16 also is provided with an opening 21 located above and in register with the opening Zti, together providing a window in the reservoir.

The openings 2% and 21 are covered by a gauge member 22 of glass or other transparent or semi-transparent material through which the level of the Water in the reservoir may be observed. The gauge member 22 preferably comprises an integrally formed body having a closed top 23 and depending longitudinally extending 3,075,399 Patented Jan. 29, 1963 2 parallel flat side walls 24 connected by end walls 25. The depth of the side walls 24 and end walls 25 from the top surface of the gauge 22' to the lower edge of said walls is slightly greater than the distance from the upper surface of the shield 16 to the inner surface of the top of the reservoir, so that when the member 22 is mounted as hereinafter described said walls contact the edges of the window openings 29 and 21 as shown in FIG. 3', and the lower edges 26 of said walls extend slightly below the-said innersurface of the top of the reservoir. 14.

The gauge member 22 is provided with a horizontally disposed flange 27 which extends laterally outwardly from the sides 24 and ends 25 of the member 22. The flange 27 has flat parallel upper and lower surfaces, preferably slightly downwardly inclined as shown in FIG. 3 to conform to the surfaces of the top of the reservoir 14 and bottom of the shield 16 between which said flange 27 islocated'.

The gauge member 22 is installed in communication with the interior of the reservoir It in water tight relationship. The side. walls 24 and end walls 25 fit snugly in the opening 29 in engagement with the. edges of the reservoir top wall surrounding said opening. Any suitable plastic cement 28 which will withstand the temperatures of the iron if used with or without water in the reservoir is applied "to the top of the reservoir adjacent the opening, or is applied to the lower surface of the flange 27. Thev gauge member is pressed downwardly until the flange 27 contacts the reservoir with the cement 28 between them. Then the handle 12 is placed in position so that the upper portion 23 of the gauge 22 fits in the opening 21 in the shield 16. Since the handle 12 including the shield 16 is fastened to the body 1%, and the shield overlies the flange 27, the shield aids in retaining the gauge member 22 in its intended water tight connection with the reservoir.

The rear end 29 of the handle may be hollow to reduce weight, and is provided with surfaces 30 on which the iron rests when placed on end, as shown in FIG. 2. The gauge is intended to be read when the iron is in the on-end position. The shield 16 may be marked as indicated by the upper and lower arrows in FIG. 2 to inform the user that the reservoir is full or the water level is low. When the water level is opposite the upper arrow, the reservoir is nearly full due to the fact that the forward portion (that is the upper portion in FIG. 2) is narrow as compared to the greater width of the reservoir at its opposite end.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, we have shown a modification of the invention. Parts previously described herein have been designated by corresponding numerals. The gauge member 40 differs in form from the member 22 shown in FIGS. 1-3 inclusive.

The member 40 comprises a transversely curved upper portion 41 and a horizontally disposed side and end flange 42 extending around the upper portion 41. The flange 42 has a lower surface generally flat, shaped to conform to the top of the reservoir 14 on which it rests. Cement 43 firmly connects the flange 42. to the upper surface of the reservoir. Instead of providing a window such as shown at 2) in FIGS. 14, inclusive,, we have slotted the top of the reservoir as indicated at 44. Water in the reservoir flows into the gauge member 4%} through the slots when the iron is placed on end, and the water level is visible through the member 40 as heretofore described.

Some steam irons are designed to receive water in their reservoirs through filler openings in the top of the forward part of the handle; others have filler openings in the front face of the handle. In using either structure, irons embodying our invention can be filled directly from a water faucet and the water level can be observed aorasos through the transparent portion of the gauge member when the iron is turned on end as shown in FIG. 2. During the ironing process, it is customary to support the iron on end from time to time while arranging the material being ironed, and in that position the water level can be noted conveniently by the use of our inventron.

The invention can be embodied in irons varying in construction, and changes may be made in the form and details of construction of the gauge without departing from our invention.

We claim:

1. A steam iron provided with a sight gauge which is substantially coextensive with the length of a water reservoir mounted within the body of the iron for showing the precise level of water in said reservoir as an aid to filling same and when said iron is in normal vertically supported position on its rear end, comprising a rigid hollow shell-like body having a sole plate on the bottom thereof, said body extending upwardly and inwardly from opposite sides of said sole plate and terminating in centrally spaced relationship with respect to said sole plate providing an elongated top opening in said body, a handle for said iron including front and rear spaced apart upright leg members mounted on the inturned portions of said body adjacent opposite ends of said elongated top opening therein, an elongated waterreservoir mounted within said body and extending longitudinally beneath said top opening therein and said upstanding leg members, an elongated transparent sight gauge having a raised central portion mounted on said in length with the distance between said leg members,

said reservoir having longitudinally spaced apertures therein in communication with the raised central portion of said sight gauge, and whereby the level of water in said reservoir as measuredbetween said upright leg members may be readily observed from top to bottom thereof when said iron is in normally upright supported position on its rear end.

2. The steam iron defined by claim 1, which includes a shield covering the top opening of the body between and extending from the front to the rear upright leg members, said shield being provided with an elongated opening extending between said leg members and registering with said sight gauge so that said sight gauge is visible through said opening in the shield.

References Qited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,288,377 Bryan Dec. 17, 1918 2,190,904 Wiggins Feb. 20, 1940 2,433,901 Hayashi Jan. 6, 1948 2,514,744 Cipyak July 11, 1950 v2,647,406 Sorensen Aug. 4, 1953 2,668,378 Vance Feb. 9, 1954 2,825,986 Pavlic Mar. 11, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,137,186 France Jan. 7, 1957 OTHER REFERENCES German Application 1,002,961, printed Feb. 21, 1957 (K1. 42c 30). 

1. A STEAM IRON PROVIDED WITH A SIGHT GAUGE WHICH IS SUBSTANTIALLY COEXTENSIVE WITH THE LENGTH OF A WATER RESERVOIR MOUNTED WITHIN THE BODY OF THE IRON FOR SHOWING THE PRECISE LEVEL OF WATER IN SAID RESERVOIR AS AN AID TO FILLING SAME AND WHEN SAID IRON IS IN NORMAL VERTICALLY SUPPORTED POSITION ON ITS REAR END, COMPRISING A RIGID HOLLOW SHELL-LIKE BODY HAVING A SOLE PLATE ON THE BOTTOM THEREOF, SAID BODY EXTENDING UPWARDLY AND INWARDLY FROM OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID SOLE PLATE AND TERMINATING IN CENTRALLY SPACED RELATIONSHIP WITH RESPECT TO SAID SOLE PLATE PROVIDING AN ELONGATED TOP OPENING IN SAID BODY, A HANDLE FOR SAID IRON INCLUDING FRONT AND REAR SPACED APART UPRIGHT LEG MEMBERS MOUNTED ON THE INTURNED PORTIONS OF SAID BODY ADJACENT OPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID ELONGATED TOP OPENING THEREIN, AN ELONGATED WATER RESERVOIR MOUNTED WITHIN SAID BODY AND EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY BENEATH SAID TOP OPENING THEREIN AND SAID UPSTANDING LEG MEMBERS, AN ELONGATED TRANSPARENT SIGHT GAUGE HAVING A RAISED CENTRAL PORTION MOUNTED ON SAID RESERVOIR WITHIN SAID TOP OPENING AND BEING COEXTENSIVE IN LENGTH WITH THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID LEG MEMBERS, SAID RESERVOIR HAVING LONGITUDINALLY SPACED APERTURES THEREIN IN COMMUNICATION WITH THE RAISED CENTRAL PORTION OF SAID SIGHT GAUGE, AND WHEREBY THE LEVEL OF WATER IN SAID RESERVOIR AS MEASURED BETWEEN SAID UPRIGHT LEG MEMBERS MAY BE READILY OBSERVED FROM TOP TO BOTTOM THEREOF WHEN SAID IRON IS IN NORMALLY UPRIGHT SUPPORTED POSITION ON ITS REAR END. 